In this article, I will review Street Wise Spanish and give you some advice on “staying safe and sound” in Latin America or a Spanish-speaking country. I will begin with my review of Streetwise Spanish.

Streetwise Spanish is not just a book. It is a guide to Hispanic culture but is also packed with the kind of Spanish that you can use in real-life situations, including the “streets.”

It is actually more of a Spanish course than a book. There is even an option to get the downloadable audio of the vocabulary words to help reinforce what you are learning.

The author, Peter Christian, is a self-described “x-Gringo” and he is a friend of mine. Although I have never met Peter face-to-face, he must have subscribed to my newsletter the very first year I started it in 2004, and over the years we have exchanged emails, spoken over the phone once, and talked about our passion for the Spanish language and culture.

The only major difference is that my passion for the Spanish language has moved me to South America (Medellín, Colombia). And Peter’s passion for the Spanish language has transported him to Europe (Barcelona, Spain).

Streetwise Spanish is an enjoyable and interesting read and regardless of what level you are on, you will still want to read this book from cover to cover and listen

to all of the audio.

One of my favorite “capítulos” or chapters in the book is a “capítulo” called “Staying Safe and Sound.” (Actually “Staying Safe and Sound” is probably my second or third

favorite chapter in Peter’s course.)

In this “capítulo,” Peter gives helpful advice on how to blend in with the locals, by wearing what they wear, and avoiding being an easy target to identify.

In today’s article of down to earth eating, we will be uncovering one of the myths surrounding speed reduction, street pick up. Sure, through out the internet, there are people who claim that it is possible to chat up any women on the street and somehow start a sexual relationship with her. Well guys, sad to let you know but, these kind of occurrences are very few and far between. If you are going to count on this to determine your overall success with women, you are in for a rude awakening. Even if you are very advanced, and you are able to run extremely solid game, you will still have a lot against you. I will now share with you a couple of reasons why.

First, the probability of a girl being in the mood to be chatted up is extremely low. Of ten hot girls on the street, probably only three would be receptive to a random attractive stranger talking to them. Of these three, there may be one who would be without any moral or social restrictions. This means she is single and available. Now, as well scale down this probability, of ten girls who are receptive and single, probably only two would be open enough to give you her number. No matter how much skill or how experienced you are, you are not going to be able to change this fact of probability. The only way which your skills are going to help you is giving you better discretion on which girl to open and which girl to pass. An advanced player seems to have a really high hit rate only because he is able to tell when a girl is already closed from the beginning. Truth is, there are scenarios which are really closed from you no matter what you do.

The other main reason why street pick up is a myth is because, if you noticed, most videos which so called gurus show online only involve people exchanging numbers. Nothing more. The reason is simple. Out of every ten numbers you get, probably only two will convert into a real meeting, if you are lucky. When a girl gives out her number on the street, she herself is well aware of the potential risks involved. No matter what you do or say, she will always have a few questions regarding her own personal safety. Is he a serial killer? Will he take advantage of me? And most importantly, why did i even give him my number in the first place? The emotional state which she was in when she gave you her number will be drastically different after you two separate. In most cases, she will start to wonder what in the world just happened. And she will actually rationalize that she just wasn’t thinking straight when she first met you. This will inevitably lead to a freak out on her part.

“The simplest and most direct solution requiring the fewest number of steps is usually the correct solution to any problem.” This philosophical principle of living is called Occum’s Razor. What I want to talk about here is a simple, easy and obvious solution for the immediate self defense of everyone reading this article.

Forget about your carved deluxe nunchakus. Forget your ultra light 30″ broad sword. Forget your double-headed Wushu steel spear. This is the 21th century, for God’s sake! You will not be able to carry around any of these exotic and ancient weapons no matter how cool they look in the martial arts magazine ads. Get real! If you want to carry and use a self defense weapon, why make it complicated?

The simplest, easiest, and most effective modern-day weapon you could ever carry doesn’t require years of training nor the awarding of any belt. In a moment, I will help you to re-discover the power and simplicity of a very common but much neglected legal self defense weapon.

The 7 Most Important Reasons To Always Carry Pepper Spray:

Reason #1 To Always Carry It – It’s Legal – When you are ordering your swords, nunchakus, shiroken stars and rattan bo staffs, have you ever considered the simple fact that all of these exotic weapons are illegal? You want to order something which can be obtained conveniently over the internet and something which is affordable and perfectly legal.

Reason #2 To Always Carry It – It’s Effective – It gets the job done. If you spray it to the eyes of the aggressor, nor matter how big and bad they are, they are temporarily blinded and immobilized.

Reason #3 To Always Carry It – It Works Against Mad Dogs – A shot to the eyes and the snout of even an attacking pit bull or doberman will cause it to panic and run around in a frenzied circle before it runs off giving you time to get away.

Reason #4 To Always Carry It – It Works Against Mad Humans – Spray him in the eyes, and he will scream in pain grabbing for his eyes giving you time to finish off the job. (Remember, the spray has a range of over five feet!)

Reason #5 To Always Carry It – It’s Portable – Unlike carrying your broad sword around, this self defense spray is very portable. I recommend that you get the small thin spray canister that is also a key chain. It looks like an ordinary key chain.

Reason #6 To Always Carry It – It’s Easy To Conceal – It fits comfortably in your pocket. Not only is it legal, it is a legally concealed weapon.

Reason #7 To Always Carry It – It Allows You To Continue Striking A Opponent After You Spray Him – Your spray can be used as a surprise preemptive strike after which you follow through with more traditional strikes, such as, kicks to the shin, to the groin or palm strikes to the chin.

No matter how you look at it, for a simple, easy and effective self defense solution for everyone–pepper spray rocks!

Well, like it or not, the internet has arrived in terms of a boom for the internet shopper. The gloves are off and the High Street vs the Internet is a daily course of action. Of course, there will always be the hardened city shopper and you will never change this attitude. The new breed on the block, is of course the internet shopper. Who would be a High Street retailer? In my opinion it is a one sided fight, and the internet wins, hands down!

What are the benefits of home shopping on the internet? Firstly, and I think the most beneficial point of all, is that you are in the comfort of your own home, or office or with a laptop any where you want to be in the world. Relaxation is a key to shopping. A quiet moment, a cup of tea or coffee or a glass of wine, and you can sit in front of the PC screen. Choose your favourite website, pick your product, and track down the best price available. Be very lucky and you will find a merchant who offers free delivery and Hey Presto!, life is wonderful!

Or, what you could do is get in the car, or wait for the bus or train, and trudge off to the High Street. Hustle and Bustle your way around town. Get a swing door close in your face from an ignorant shopper ahead of you. Get in the queue and wait to pay for your goods, and then with bag or bags, heave your way back home. It is a no – brainer really isn’t it? I buy a lot of gifts in twelve months and most of my shopping is online. I found a great site, which I book marked and it is always my first port of call should I need ideas for her or for him. Once I have the idea, I set about finding the best value, free delivery if possible, and all on one site. No hassle, no brainer!

You may not know which direction you’re headed in but Garmin’s 2720 GPS pilot pioneer street system can definitely tell you where you currently are. The Street system is one of the newest in navigation technology that Garmin has launched. The small device as big as one’s hand navigates you to your destination with reliable and accurate information through any unfamiliar territory and is fast becoming one of the prime candidates for the latest in navigational softwares and GPS devices.

The highly user friendly interface allows you to download various street maps directly onto the Street System depending on your current location or your intended destination, also the cached memory allows you to save your previous destinations for future reference. The 2720 Garmin GPS pilot pioneer street system becomes your personal guide with voice instructions once you have entered the desired destination and this works well as it allows you to continue driving safely without any distraction.

The 2720 Garmin GPS pilot pioneer street system has this feature that makes life really easy for any type of driver, it allows the user to mark out different and identify different areas such as school zones, the fire department, police stations, safety areas etc. Or if you want a bite to eat and need to fill up your tank on the way you can add markers for all the restaurants, resorts or movie theatres you have been to or intend to go to the next time around as well as your local gas stations. Your very own entertainment patrol that tells you where you want to go and never forgets the route.

On a more economical note, the 2720 Garmin GPS pilot pioneer street system allows you to dictate the route you want to choose, a more fuel efficient route or a direct traffic free route, or more often combining both. The navigational software built into the interface allows the user to anticipate possible problems where traffic is concerned that may hinder the driver along the way. Tell the Street System what you want, your wish is its command, it will give it to you. This definitely makes life loads easier for everyone. For the world’s environmentalists choosing a shorter route reduces the amount of petrol emissions as well. Entertainment markers, safety, and the Garmin name. What more can one want!

Charles: Now in this particular article, we’re going to look at the 3 best types of fighting instructors. And to the surprise of most people, it may not be the strip mall martial arts instructor, black belt that they’re looking for, but rather 3 types they are not even aware of. Bob, help us out on this. In your expert opinion, what are the 3 best types of fighting instructors.

Bob: Well-

First of All – Don’t Look For Martial Arts Training – Look for either experience or training from somebody who’s been very experienced with some real street situations.

Charles: Hmmm.

Bob:

At The Top of My List Would Be #1 – The Bouncer – A bouncer works in a place where there is a lot of violence. With my experience as a bouncer, when a person decides to become a bouncer, one of these things will happen:

• a) He Will Get Hurt Bad And Never Come Back
• b) He Will Hide In The Bathroom All Night
• c) He Will Get Damn Good At Defending Himself And Other People

So, a bouncer that actually has worked in a place where there is a lot of physical violence, is probably THE best instructor that you will be able to find.

Charles: Wow.

Bob: Now –

The 2nd One Is – The Soldier – Soldiers tend to be very physical people. No matter where you are in the army these days, you tend to be somewhere where you have to deal with lethal and non-lethal force. You can’t kill ever body that you deal with. That means that they have to deal with a lot of non-lethal situations. They also, when they get off work, just tend to be people that are very physical, that have seen a lot of violence. They also make very good instructors.

Charles: Wow.

Bob: And –

The 3rd Instructor That I Would Recommend Is NOT Just A Police Officer, But The Right Kind of Police Officer – Just like with bouncing, there are a lot of police officers that have never drawn their gun, never made a fist in their lives, but there are police officers that have been on the wrong side of town, and have actually worked some of the worst shifts, have seen more violence in just a couple of days than any strip mall martial artist you’ll ever see. So, they have the practical experience, plus the training.

Charles: Fantastic. Well, this does it for us. People are going to see things that they haven’t seen before with this article. And we thank you so much for this, Bob.

Bob: Sure. Thank you.

Nothing much compares to the adrenaline rush of a street bike ‘crotch rocket’ motorcycle. It’s like you own the world at your wrist and feel the full power of your will – you think, it goes, it becomes an extension of your ‘need for speed’ and if you’ve never tried it, this might sound a bit corny, but once you have you’ll agree. The other day I was discussing my love for motorcycles with a member of our think tank. Turned out he had experience with raced out street bikes himself.

The fellow think tanker stated; “I also have a keen interest in motorcycles. Currently I have a Yamaha R6. My previous bikes have all been Honda’s with my first coming at the age of 5 years old. I have had one knee surgery as a result of a dirt bike racing accident. At the moment I am desperately trying to talk my wife into a new Ducati Diavel or Monster… only time will tell.”

His Yamaha R6 sounds like so much fun. A 600 is the perfect size for me, and we have some fun little canyon roads around here, as I live out by Malibu, CA. I’ve always had Honda motorcycles too, CBR 600s mostly, although loved my GSXR slingshot (750) aluminum frame, holy crap was that a fun bike to ride. But a 600 is where I’d rather be, easy to throw around and just the right amount of acceleration not to kill me. I remember my dad flew A-4 Skyhawk’s in the US Navy and I always thought the Honda Hurricane 600 was that type of maneuverable machine. A Ducati Diavel – oh hell yes!

I agree there is nothing like a raced-out street bike! Just watch for four-wheelers making left hand turns in front of you, traffic can kill you if you don’t pay attention. I don’t know if everyone who races or has raced motorcycles agrees but racing motorcycles around really makes your mind sharper, you have to stay ahead of it, think, and react without thinking.

It helps the mind in ways a Video Game, simulator or anything else ever could. That has been my experience, and I have participated in sports, flying, business, politics, etc. There is something about it, you have the world at your wrist and every decision is real, serious, and you can’t take it back – just the way I like it too. I wonder if it is like that for others. Maybe some people get more out of it than others? Hard to say, I just know what I get out of it. I like the visual stimulation rush.

What’s a competitive intellectual with high testosterone levels to do? It’s a male thing.

Street children exhibit resilience at its best.

They live on the edges of life and face a World of extreme uncertainties and odds to survive, a kind of life that is stranger to mainstream society.

The best society does is to push them furthest of the limits of life, making it extremely difficult to survive the already harsh conditions in the open world, without shelter, warm clothing, assurances of a meal, protection, and recognition.

Yet, if given opportunities to benefit from community development programmes, like any other citizen, they flourish.

Unfortunately, it is never the case. It is the well-to-do who continue to benefit from such programs, while a blind eye focuses on the poor as street children.

It is important to know that these children have huge potential to become resourceful to their abusive families, communities, and neglectful country and World, whether on their own, or with support from hostile authorities.

Street children are most resilient humans one can find, who easily fit in jobs opportunities that call for resilient people if there is such a need.

But, this does not mean that only “dangerous” places are best for them as sources of livelihood. They are humans too, who deserve the best for their lives and, indeed, they know that, and look to such a life. It is only unfortunate that they have to go through hard and risky routines to find a coin or a few coins. From their earnings, they are able to buy food, drinking water, and clothes for leisure time activities.

Essentially, they rely on begging, fetching scrap materials, washing cars, collecting water for small business owners, cleaning utensils in exchange for food and, under extreme cases, they form gangs for individual security against hostile neighborhood and upgrade to stealing for a livelihood.

If compassion was the rule in relating with street children, extreme forms of behaviour could not arise between street children and authorities.

The standards of living are set by families they come from, communities, and city authorities who are obliged to protect them.

The violence against children and later street children is three-layered. This is enough to push any human being in ways of the jungle. They face discrimination and exclusion from neighborhood and city authorities, and are not part of the urban development agenda, and appear antisocial, whose best place is detention facility or prison.

While they face a World of extreme uncertainties and odds of living and surviving, at its best, society pushes them furthest to the end of limits that life can tolerate. This makes it extremely difficult for them to survive the already harsh conditions in the open World, without shelter, warm clothing, assurances of a meal, protection, and recognition.

But, sooner than later, and by way of group initiation, the difficult circumstances become normal, and it is (normalcy) that gives them the strength to push on everyday, to surprise or scare people outside their group structures.

Eventually, they survive so well and dominate slum business. With further support, as they very opportunity much wish, they succeed at their small business and join the core of the informal sector.

At this point, the street children we once knew as such are different human beings. Some participants in a study carried out by IMI in 2019 around central Kampala city, showed some of the children street dressed so smartly that street life was now a thing of the past.

However, they remained so popular among the “struggling” street children. Despite making such advances, they showed a need to go back to school and increase prospects of better employment remits; and, like most unemployed youths, they sought for job opportunities with better wages within their abilities and skills-sets.

As such, their socioeconomic statuses can be improved for them to join the mainstream communities as “legitimate” citizens and city dwellers.

In addition, street children could go on to become national and international icons, when given a hand to do so. That way, they can even go on to join the leadership of the country.

For now they struggle to with all sorts of odds and uncertainties they face on the streets, including what is thrown at them by so-called legitimate actions of city dwellers and authorities.

A fact-finding mission on the ‘Impact of Street Children on Development of Cities” showed that they had huge potential to become resourceful citizens if given opportunities as those celebrating successes of life. There was also evidence that they squeezed through the informal sector, renowned for fastest returns on investment and get-rich quick setting.

As a basic right and source of livelihood, they demanded to live in cities like any other citizen, to benefit from economic boom that characterize urban areas. They yearned to be treated as human beings with rights to be protected by law.

Particularly, discrimination and hostility from neighborhoods and city authorities were primary huddles in their struggle for decent living.

Street children were often treated as outlaws, without opportunity to acquire development skills, and exposure to promote their talents, mainly in music and soccer.

The needs were educational, economic, health in nature, which included; talents promotion, active participation and benefit from community development programmes, such grants to start businesses, talent promotion shows, vocational learning, languages skills development, business skills, skills for life, knowledge on sex and reproductive health, or access such services.

And, while these development programmes took effect, financial appreciation for casual and half-day tasks improved their self-esteem, therefore, they preferred education and casual work to be accorded ny such support to them concurrently.

At institutional level, there was need for sharing field reports, research collaboration, joint interventions, and availing of equipment to support recreation and rehabilitation with focus on Africa, through established development agencies, in order to change the demonized face of street children and secure a decent future for them.

I truly believe that once we make it pass 21 years of age, that we should be able to distinguish between fantasy and reality, but that is just not the case with Aikido as a so-called fighting  system of self defense.  Practitioners of this art are so into the ancient cultural romance and all of the fables that surround it, that it’s a crying shame.  I know that even wearing the traditional loose fitting oriental garb with the white fold over top and the over-sized black baggy pants that can double as a skirt, makes even the most inept and unprepared to fight feel cool and combat-ready, when in fact in a real street fight, they would probably get the dust kicked out of their pants.

Reason # 1 Why It Is Ineffective – It It Too Passive – In this system, you must wait for your assailant to move or make the first  strike.  This is against the precepts of all street fighting common sense.  YOU should always strike first after all attempts at negotiating are off.  There  is a book written by Morihei Ueshiba, the founder, called (Are you ready for this?) “The Art of Peace.”  A written review of one of his loyal followers went like this.  “Although being a man of peace, he fully understood when force must be used, and even as an old man of 81, he could take on almost any number of opponents, defeat them, but leave them unharmed.”  Yeah.  In crazy land!!  Man, with that kind of fighting love and compassion, he could kick my a… any day of the week!  I wouldn’t mind at all.  I mean, he could hurt me–and–leave me unharmed!  That’s some awesome stuff!

Reason # 2 Why It Is Ineffective – There Are No Strikes – You are totally dependent on your opponent’s first moves or strikes against you.  The theory is that you are supposed to be able to go with the movement of the attacker allowing him to “throw himself” to the ground.  This system also presupposes that there will always be ample room to fight to be able to throw, flip and twirl opponents across a room.  What if you are in very close quarters fighting with lots of furniture all around you? 

Reason # 3 Why It Is Ineffective – Aikido Hinges A Little Too Much On Highly Unpredictable And Hard-To-Control Metaphysical Concepts Such As “Ki” Energy – The theory is that we can summon “Universal Energy” from what is called the One Point, a location three inches below the navel where the “ki” energy is stored.  When channeled up from the One Point, through the arms and hands, you are suddenly given almost supernatural strength and abilities to control your opponent.  It is highly questionable that the average person under the stress and dangers of a real street confrontation, with the heartbeat racing at a rate higher than 180 beats per minute, that he or she would be able to relax enough to channel one’s “ki” energy from the navel throughout the arms and palms of the hand to become an instant action hero with super-human powers.  As soon as he or she would see the blade of the knife or barrel of the gun, the accelerated heart rate would create the inevitable adrenaline dump which would trigger the immediate fight or flight response.  Since the practitioner of this system is not trained to act but only to react, their reaction is not likely to be the “fight” response but rather the “flight” response.  How you train is how you fight.

Aikido moves portrayed while it is being demonstrated on stage are graceful, artistic, cool and beautiful.  And even though the audience may cheer and applaud with total abandon, they are still only celebrating the choreographed moves of the greatest system of fighting fantasy ever created. 

Every now and then, we get stimulated to make that road experience, proper? Be it for enterprise or pleasure, there’s a-must-check list before making your avenue experience. In case you are asking, why do I want to check my vehicle before a road journey?’ well, avenue journeys, in particular if they are lengthy can be somewhat difficult for your automobile. A small fault can be amplified and might turn out to be negative fundamental components which are pricey to restore. Right here are top 6 critical matters to check earlier than a road ride.

1. Leaks and hoses

The primary issue that you should take a look at is the leaks and hoses. In case you perceive bulges or blisters on any of the hoses you then ought to update it. This is due to the fact bulges and blisters are signs of weakness that exist inside the wall of the hoses and can result in bursting and leakages. Also, make certain that all clips are slicing nicely into all of the rubber to prevent leaks. Replace any hose that has pinhole leaks.

2. Engine oil and coolant

if you have previously turned a blind eye to converting oil then it’s excessive time you replaced the oil earlier than making your journey. A avenue ride will subject your automobile engine to heavy obligation venture and stress. If your oil is in bad circumstance then there may be a likely hood of the engine malfunctioning. When you exchange your engine oil and coolant, ensure which you are changing with the advocated brand of oil and coolants.

3. Tyres

Tyres which are in properly situation will provide you with the great deal-wished peace of thoughts whilst traveling. What are precise matters that you need to test in your automobile tyres? There are two crucial elements that you want not to miss. These consist of the threads and the strain on the tyres. The threads must be in appropriate condition with a purpose to offer most traction. At the identical time ensure that the pressure in all the four tyres is set as in line with the pointers scripted on driver gasoline filler door.

4. Lighting

Driving without light is an offense but even worse is that it’s miles risky to pressure without lighting fixtures inside the night. Start by checking the obligatory lighting. Those consist of the tail and aspect lighting. You must test the headlights, variety-plate and forestall lights, as well as course signs. Additionally make certain that the fog lighting, danger caution lighting fixtures, are running optimally.

5. Brakes

Do that brake fluids can absorb moisture with time? Well, as brake fluids age, it absorbs moisture which could corrode the braking component. If you discover that your brake fluid has turned to rather marple syrup then you definitely need to update it. Have the brake pads inspected and the worn out ones replaced.

6. Fuel cap

A fuel cap performs an essential position in the fuel system. It’ll save you evaporation, spillage of gases as well as preserving off contaminants from getting into the gas tank. Make certain that your gasoline cap is securely mounted earlier than starting your journey. The good thing is that after your automobile detects a problem inside the gasoline system, the take a look at engine light comes on. Use an obd2 scanner to turn off the lighting after fastening the fuel cap.